The Authors and Talks
Andrew Hamilton : retired in 1989 from teaching History at schools in Hereford and Worcester.
He was responsible for the restoration of a watermill to full working order in Warwickshire and managed it as a popular tourist attraction. He started Dene House Publishing in 2009 with the publication of the well-received Meet at Dawn, Unarmed, a commentary on his grandfather Robert Hamilton’s diary of his experiences with the Royal Warwicks in 1914 and his part in the Christmas Truce at St. Yvon in Belgium. There was much TV, Radio and newspaper interest for the centenary in 2014 and the diary was used for the Royal Shakespeare’s production of ‘The Christmas Truce’.
Alan Reed : retired from full-time teaching in Cheshire in 1996 to concentrate on guiding school and adult groups on the Western Front.
He gives numerous talks on various aspects of the Great War. His interest was inspired by his father who worked for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in northern France. A fluent French speaker, his vast knowledge of the battlefield sites of France and Belgium has been invaluable in the research and planning for the four publications. He has been a consultant for and appeared in several BBC’s ‘Songs of Praise’ programmes.
Talks
The authors are experienced speakers and give talks on the Christmas Truce of 1914 (including an in-depth assessment of whether football matches were played over Christmas between British and German soldiers), based on their book ‘Meet at Dawn Unarmed’. They give talks based on ‘Stolen Lives’ and now offer talks on ‘Remembrance and War Memorials after the Great War.’
For further information email achamilton43@gmail.com or ring 07743696166/ 01789 842903.
Photography
The majority of photographs in Stolen Lives were taken by Warwickshire based photographer James Kerr www.jameskerr.co.uk
Above – Alan Reed on left, Andrew Hamilton on right
Above:
On left – Andrew Hamilton at the unveiling of the ‘Football’ Memorial at Plugstreet Wood in Belgium, December 2014
On right – Alan Reed with Rifleman William McFadzean’s VC medal